In the retail industry, the use of electronic price labels to price label a shelf is growing. Much like traditional paper or plastic labels, the electronic price labels convey a variety of information about the products on the shelf to a consumer. Such information includes, for example, the cost of the products, the unit size of the products, and the like.
The electronic price labels incorporate varying degrees of technology and, therefore, have varying degrees of sophistication. Indeed, some electronic price labels need to be programmed individually at the location of the unit. On the other hand, more advanced electronic price labels having wireless communication capabilities may be programmed from a distant or remote location. For example, a corporate office may update the information displayed on the electronic price labels even though the corporate office is miles and miles away from the location where these advanced electronic prices labels are used.
As number of electronic price labels increases, the need for holders or attachments capable of supporting these electronic price labels on or in front of a retail shelf will correspondingly increase. Unfortunately, there is presently a lack of suitable holders for this purpose. This is the result of several factors. For one, there is no industry standard or common size for the electronic price labels. As a result, the holders for the electronic price labels must be custom built. This is costly for retailers.
In addition, because the electronic devices contain sensitive and fragile electronic equipment, the holders designed to support these devices must be able to protect the electronic price labels from the harsh conditions of the retail environment. For example, the holder must be able to protect the electronic price labels from collisions with shopping carts, product spills and other contaminants, and the like. However, currently available holders for electronic shelf labels, such as those commercially available from Fast Industries, are not sufficient in this regard. If the holders cannot adequately protect the electronic price labels, the labels will likely prematurely fail and have to be replaced. Again, this is costly for retailers.
Also, the holders for electronic price labels are too often subject to intentional removal by parties not associated with the retailer. The presently available holders do not adequately discourage unscrupulous individuals from vandalizing or stealing the electronic price labels. As noted above, the need to replace the electronic price labels is costly.
There exists, therefore, a need in the art for a roll formed channel configured to be supported by a retail shelf and capable of holding an electronic price label that overcomes one or more of the above-noted problems. The invention provides such an electronic price label holder. These and other advantages of the invention, as well as additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein.